Guided Eco-Tourism Trips in the BWCA & the fishing continues...

Happy Memorial Day to everyone. After a beautiful day yesterday in Ely, MN today is a bit cloudy and cool with t-storms in the forecast. Jim spent the day yesterday with customers on a Guided Eco-Tourism Day Trip to the Hegaman Lake Pictographs.

Here we are portaging our canoes from the parking lot to Hegman Lake.

Now that the vegetation is finally greening up they were able to sample some delicious 'cucumber like' Clintonia. Clintonia is an excellent substitute for cucumbers and add excellent flavor to salads...especially when you are in the Wilderness on a canoe trip.

Fishing was a bit more challenging this week which was primarily due to the constant change in weather patterns. Walleyes are still going pretty strong on jigs and minnows as well as Lindy Rigs and are being caught in 10-20 feet of water.


As always evening slip bobber fishing off the dock has made for some great entertainment and memories. We see that Claire is blossoming into quite the 'fishing chick' as she is always asking Jim to take her fishing (whether it be in a boat or just on the dock). She just loves playing with the minnows until her bobber goes down and then she dashes over to her rod that dad was holding onto and reels in her fish.

Customers have been catching some nice crappies as well as quality northern pike.

Spring Fishing in Ely, MN off to a great start!

Spring fishing off our main dock is something we look forward to each year. No need to hop in a boat with the kids, just cast off the dock with a bobber and the fish will come.


Walleyes, northern pike, perch, and crappie is what we've reeled in so far. Some evenings the action doesn't even let us sit down on the bench - put a minnow on the hook, cast out, bobber down, reel it in and then repeat!



We've had a few fish dinners, the rest just get returned to the water to perhaps catch another day.












Our guests staying here have had some great days on the water too! Ryan and Andy, return guests from Minneapolis, came up to enjoy the spring fishing for a 3rd year in a row. They reeled in 71 walleyes in the 2 1/2 days they spent on the water.






They still use the 'honey hole' that Jim put them on 3 years ago!

MN Fishing Opener - snow of course!

Saturday, May 9 was Minnesota's Fishing Opener - we had snow, rain and wind! It sounds like if you could have withstanded Mother Nature that she did reward you with fish. We heard that people were limiting out with walleyes on Basswood & White Iron Chain of Lakes.

We decided to just fish off our dock Sunday afternoon with the kids. Claire reeled in this 23" Northern Pike! Gavin and I each hooked large Northern's too - we only got a glimpse of each before they broke free. Jim said Gavin's was definitely in the 36" range. We also caught numerous walleyes, with Jim reeling in a 25" walleye that he released. Got to love spring fishing off the dock!